About the Author: Kyle Lagunas is the HR Analyst at Software Advice. He blogs about technology, trends, and best practices in human resources and recruiting, and enjoys cooking for friends and family in his spare time.
The modern organization has changed – it is decentralized and increasingly, virtual. And yet, the need to remain connected to your organization continues to grow. Your employee handbook says you have an open door policy, but an open door policy is more metaphorical than factual. Employees are not seeking to enter a physical office to connect with you. They want to reach you via some communications channels you may be less than familiar with. Fortunately, even the busiest leaders can breathe some life into their open door policies by following a few rules of thumb.
Three Tips for Tweeting, Chatting, and Connecting
The rules are a bit different when you’re connecting with employees online. However, you may be surprised to find these new channels are a great (and oftentimes convenient) way to strengthen your employee relations. Novice and adepts users alike should keep these things in mind when reaching out:
Don’t be so serious. Informal check-ins are more comfortable for employees, and casual hello-how-are-yous offer a great opportunity for leaders to engage employees. A lot of companies use chat clients for quick communications. Though some of us are more familiar with this media, others struggle to communicate effectively via instant messengers. Not to fear. If you’re not comfortable with the LOLs, OMGs, and TTYLs, don’t use them. Just keep things short and respond quickly. The point here is that you’re making yourself both available and approachable.
Choose your words carefully.Regardless of how you intend a message, interpretation can vary – especially with emails and memos. It can be difficult to find words to convey exactly what you mean, and communication is all the more challenging when you are not sitting across the table from the other person. And when it comes to electronic communications, choosing the right medium is often just as important as what you’re trying to say. If you find yourself burning bridges via email, tools likeToneCheck can be really useful.
Get your people on board.The more people you have using the same tool to communicate, the easier it is to connect with them – and the greater potential to connect with others. So it is critical that you rally your team to a common communications and collaboration platform, and make sure they use it. Over time, the value of everyone working together on one system will make it a critical part of their routine.
Interaction with a good boss is critical to realizing your full potential as an employee. With the right tools, keeping tabs on your people and your organization can become a part of your regular workflow. At the end of the day, though, you know what works best for you – and for your organization. Feel free to dabble in a few different products until you find the right one, keeping in mind that many tools are free at their most basic level.
To create the most effective onboarding program for your organization, thoroughly imagine yourself in the shoes of new employees. Think about questions they tend to ask. Get input from newer staff about what was missing when they first started. Required paperwork and a physical tour of your facility are important, of course, but go above and beyond necessities to new employee comfort and niceties. Onboarding can be as formal or casual as needed but the goal is to help the employee acclimate and become truly engaged in the work and in your organization resulting in greater productivity, better fit and longer retention.
Work with the manager to gain buy-in and assistance in creating a program that tells new staff, “We’re glad you’re with us!” Some activities may be standard for all and some tailored to a department or position; some will happen the first day and others during weeks to come. Have checklists of responsibilities for HR, the manager and the employee so everyone is on the same page and items don’t get skipped. Take any steps you can before the first work day such as mailing out paperwork, company brochures, org chart, mission statement and statement of core values.
Be creative but also think about the basics. Have the manager make sure the workspace is clean (remove messy traces of the former occupant such as coffee cups, stale food or old pens that won’t write.) Organize or eliminate piles of paper. Be sure it’s properly equipped and that everything is relevant and helpful such as contact information and a company directory. Have business cards made up in advance, if possible, and give the employee items with the company logo if you have them.
The employee handbook is important but it is often dense and not absorbed quickly. You can get fancy with videos and computer based materials if you have the resources, but lacking those, how about creating a simple, folksy and readable brochure that highlights the basics of what the employee will encounter early on. Include information such as: parking, dress code, work hours, using the phone, late and absence policies, acceptable behaviors and etiquette, where to obtain supplies, basic safety and security rules, expense reimbursement, email and internet use, use of refrigerator or lunchroom, timing of breaks, IT support, mailroom procedures, where to go for information, accessing the company intranet, purchasing procedures, degree of flexibility, company discounts, etc.
Schedule an ergonomic evaluation early on, if possible, and plan trainings that will be most useful at different stages. Bear in mind that when encountering a lot of new information, people can’t retain it all so provide information in several formats spread out over time. Be sure the employee gets introduced to colleagues and that work flow and cross-departmental processes are explained. Have expectations conveyed verbally and in writing. Make sure the employee knows whom to go to with concerns. Consider the role co-workers can play by taking the new employee to lunch, providing informal information, and serving as a work buddy or guide on how to get things done. Arrange meetings between the employee and upper management and folks from other departments to convey a range of perspectives and to let the employee know that they are valuable and worth spending time with. Set up “meet and greet” activities, departmental breakfasts or coffee klatches, encourage wellness participation and other team activities. Make it fun!
As your onboarding program unfolds, don’t forget to periodically check in with both the employee and supervisor to see how things are going. Encourage feedback so you can tweak and add to onboarding activities and you’ll soon have a robust and effective program!
Throughout the economic downturn, most companies have been operating in a strained state of “just-getting-by” but that is not sustainable for long-term success. As they seem to be slowly hiring again, the employment process and retention come into focus once more. With employee loyalty in a trough, turnover due to voluntary resignations will emerge from its two-year hiatus. As the fledging recovery strengthens, how can you help new employees become valuable and valued members of your team?
There are many benefits to “onboarding”, the term given to a robust employee orientation program that goes well beyond paperwork and giving out a handbook. Studies have shown that the first 60 to 90 days of employment are the most important for helping an individual acclimate and become a loyal and productive member of your team. What will help your new employee feel more comfortable sooner?
An earlier sense of comfort aids in the learning process. Keep in mind that little things such as finding the bathroom, memorizing a barrage of new names and faces, figuring out a unique culture and new systems while learning the job itself constitute a mixture of sensory data that can contribute to a human being’s sense of overload and exhaustion during the first days and weeks of any new job. An analogy is learning to swing a golf club for the first time—working on too many aspects at once is too daunting, doesn’t improve the swing and might make the newcomer hate golf! So allow for a bit more time for new staff to learn things logically step-by-step. It’s worth the small investment of being a bit more thoughtful early on to reap better results and greater chances of retention in the long run.
Often an HR professional knows what new employees need but must work with a manager who is anxious to get new staff on the front lines asap and shows little patience for paperwork or orientation activities. Sometimes managers have the idea that if they had to “sink or swim”, then new employees should too. Or they may simply not remember how hard it was to be the new kid on the block. So explain how the onboarding process is beneficial to the manager, namely that the employee who is given more onboarding support up front will become productive sooner, feel a stronger sense of commitment and thus be more likely to stay longer. Gain that manager’s buy-in by involving him or her in creating a more effective orientation and learning plan. Be sure to schedule some face time for the new employee with upper management to send the message right off that he or she is valued while giving onboarding activities the visibility and buy-in from the top that they deserve.
What are some further components of a good onboarding program? Stay tuned for Part 2.
The Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act (ADAAA) has been with us for a couple of years but the final interpretation of the expanded coverage under the Amendments Act is just recently in. The ADA precludes discrimination in hiring and employment decisions. So what does the final interpretation mean for you as an employer?
The main thing is that a lot more people than ever before will qualify for protection under the Act. This makes it vital to consider possible ADA-related effects before taking any employment action. Coverage now includes an array of impairments including those that are episodic such as cancer or diabetes. Also included are mental illnesses and learning disabilities. As diagnoses of some of these conditions increase, the number of applicants and staff you encounter who are protected by the Act will likewise continue to grow.
There are three categories of covered individuals:
1. Someone who is disabled
2. Someone who has a record of being disabled
3. Someone who is regarded as being disabled.
An individual who falls under one of the first two categories may request “reasonable accommodation” and you should comply if the situation warrants and the accommodation does not create an “undue hardship” for your organization. Remember, however, that the person must be able to perform the essential functions of the position with such accommodation. You are under no obligation to employ someone who can’t do the job. Perform a thorough analysis and make sure all job descriptions are complete and accurate.
Be mindful that an individual who claims to fall under the “regarded as” category may also bring a claim of discrimination. Therefore, every employment action should be viewed in light of the ADA. Make ADA training mandatory for every supervisor and manager in your organization. Be sure they understand that more employees and applicants than ever before will be covered and that an ADA lens needs to be used to view employment situations and actions.
As summer quickly comes upon us, so do new liabilities in the work place. The potential for liability issues increases as the temperature heats up outside, and employers can find themselves facing a whole new range of issues. From teenagers looking for a summer job to skimpy summer styles and increased vacation requests, employers can find themselves facing a greater chance of sexual harrasment claims and without a full staff. Here are some tips to make sure that the heat of the summer doesn’t heat up your workplace.
Prevent harrassment: As the temperature increases outside, the length of skirts decrease inside. Many employers have a more relaxed summer dress code, which can improve employee morale, but at the same time it can be a breeding ground for sexual harrassment. To prevent this, employers should remind their employess of antiharassment and other employee conduct rules throughout the summer.
“Regardless of a company’s appearnace standards, it is imperative to have a solid written policy that is consistently enforced, especially during the summer months when causual dress could lead to a sexual harrasment lawsuit”Christopher Boman, Fisher & Phillips LLP.
Schedule vacation requests in advance: The summer may bring more vacation requests than average, so it is important to be prepared for this so as not to be left short staffed. Employers should ensure that the employee handbook has a section outlining their vacation policy, and make sure to include that vacation requests must be made in advance, approved by management, and that they can be denied if the request would “create a hardship for the company.”
Know child labor issues: As school wraps up for students, many of them will begin looking for summer jobs to make some extra money and gain experience. Hiring employees under the age of 18 means that specific labor laws must be followed, such as limitations on the number of hours an individual may work within a set period of time. Be sure to be aware of your state’s child labor laws in order to avoid potential legal troubles.
Be aware of the “Summer Flu:” With warm weather and sunshine comes the opportunity for a day out of the office and a day at the beach. Be aware that employees may seem to get “sick” on the perfect summer day. To prevent this, employers may want to consider enforcing a policy that requires a doctor’s note for an unexpected illness. Employers should make sure that all employees are aware of their sick day policy, and be sure to enforce the policy consistently.
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